Law/Health

Distinguish between a misdemeanor and a felony criminal offense and discuss the potential impact of criminal violations on health care professionals. In other words, what could happen to your or a health care professional's status and license when found guilty of a crime?

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1. Distinguish between a misdemeanor and a felony criminal offense and discuss the potential impact of criminal violations on health care professionals. In other words, what could happen to you or a health care professional's status and license when found guilty of a crime?

Misdemeanor is a lesser?"crime that is punishable by less than one year in jail, such as minor theft and simple assault that does not result in substantial bodily injury" (http://www.nfa.futures.org/BASICnet/glossary.aspx?term=M).

A felony is "a more serious crime, a criminal offense and punishable by incarceration (but not always) for a year or more. It includes offenses such as rape, murder, robbery, burglary and arson" (http://www.nfa.futures.org/BASICnet/glossary.aspx?term=F).

However, the difference between a misdemeanor and a felony is not always clear-cut from state to state in the US, or in other countries. Generally, it is fair to say that a misdemeanor can be defined by the maximum length of time a person can be incarcerated for the crime, usually no more than one year. Crimes with a minimum jail time of over a year are usually felonies. Moreover, one can say that any crime not a felony is by nature a misdemeanor (http://www.wisegeek.com/whats-the-difference-between-a-misdemeanor-and-a-felony.htm).

In some cases, such as purposeful property damage, or where property is stolen, the charge of misdemeanor or felony may be decided based on the dollar amount of damage or missing property. For example, in Arizona, if the purposeful damage costs under 250 US dollars (USD), she or he is charged with a misdemeanor. If however, the damage is between 250-2000 USD, the charge is generally a class 6 felony. ...

Solution Summary

Distinguishes between a misdemeanor and a felony criminal offense and discusses the potential impact of criminal violations on health care professionals. In other words, this solution explains what could happen to your or a health care professional's status and license when found guilty of a crime. Examples are provided.